1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a permanently sealed and/or disposable pressure vessel for conditioning and/or for treating and/or for filtering and/or for purifying a fluid, and particularly concerns a permanently sealed pressure vessel having a shock resistant mounting for the pressure gradient member mounted within the pressure vessel.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In conventional pressure vessels used for conditioning and/or purifying a fluid, a pressure gradient member, such as a purification and/or filtration cartridge, is mounted in place within the pressure vessel by adhering the top end plate of the cartridge to the top wall of the pressure vessel (hereinafter referred to as xe2x80x9cadhesive mountingxe2x80x9d). When the cartridge is mounted in place within the pressure vessel, appropriate seals provide that only fluid that has passed through the cartridge exists the pressure vessel.
A problem with these conventional pressure vessels is that when they receive a severe side impact, such its that which might be incurred if the pressure vessel is dropped during installation, conveyance, or portable use, the impact may result in cantilevered breakage of the cartridge off of the top wall of the pressure vessel, which leads to failure of the seals between the outlet port of the pressure vessel and the cartridge. When this happens, the damaged assembly must be replaced with a new complete system. Furthermore, partial damage may result in use of a compromised assembly.
It is an object of the invention to provide a pressure vessel that is more shock resistant to side impacts than the conventional pressure vessels mentioned above.
This object and other objects are accomplished by my invention which is set out below.